The carefree, purely-for-fun days came to an end here, and summer training camp officially began.
On this Hong Kong coastline far from the noise and bustle, Teio, McQueen, and Oguri Cap's special training life moved forward—steady, grueling, and uncompromising.
Still, Kuroha wasn't the sort of devil instructor who refused to adapt.
He wasn't excessively strict with the three girls' holiday schedule.
Instead, he followed a balanced principle of "three days, a small break; five days, a big break."
He even carefully arranged activities on certain rest days—beach volleyball matches, seaside barbecue parties, and the like.
In other words, every kind of entertainment that should exist was there.
Because at the end of the day, this was still their summer vacation—something that belonged to their youth.
Even if Teio and the other two were always a little too restless, constantly thinking about sneaking in extra training under Kuroha's "observation threshold."
…
A week later, afternoon.
Hong Kong Training Grounds.
"Good."
Fumino paced over to Oguri Cap, who was drenched in sweat. After giving her condition a full once-over, she nodded in satisfaction.
"Nice work. Today's training quota is finished!"
"Fumino-nee…"
The gray-haired girl was soaked through, and the near-limit workload had left her muscles and joints aching so badly that even standing made her tremble slightly.
But those clear eyes were still bright as snow. She looked up at Fumino, calling out carefully.
"Hm?!"
Fumino's expression turned stern in an instant. She shot Oguri Cap an exasperated glare.
She didn't even need to hear the rest to know what this "owned monster" was about to ask.
"Stop. I know what you want to say."
With her arms crossed, Fumino mercilessly cut her off.
"Your Trainer gave strict orders. At this stage, absolutely no unauthorized extra training. Telling me won't help. Unless you can go persuade him yourself."
"…Okay."
Oguri Cap's ears, which had been standing tall, immediately drooped. Her whole body visibly wilted, like a big cat who'd just had her toy confiscated.
Seeing how pitiful she looked, a hint of amusement flickered through Fumino's eyes. Then she tossed out the finishing move.
"Alright, quit sulking. Go rest a bit, then wash up and change. Kuroha said he's taking everyone out tonight for a big seafood dinner."
"Dinner?!"
Oguri Cap's dead, gloomy face instantly revived. Her eyes burst with an even brighter light than before.
For her, running came first—but eating followed immediately after.
Since she was forbidden from running more, then eating became the absolute top priority right now.
"Got it, Fumino-nee! I'm going right now!"
The girl whooped, and the exhaustion from a moment ago seemed to vanish. She turned and bolted toward the dorms.
Watching Oguri Cap disappear in a flash, Fumino let out a quiet breath and glanced down at the notes in her hand.
"Trainer~ Are you thirsty? Take a break, okay?"
Behind her, a voice gentle as water rose.
Super Creek walked up with a smile, then handed her Trainer a bottle of mineral water.
"Oh. Yeah, thanks."
Fumino took the bottle and drank a few gulps.
As she lowered it again, her gaze drifted back and forth for a moment—between the mild, graceful Super Creek in front of her, and Oguri Cap in the distance, still running toward the dorms.
"Her strength really is terrifying, and her talent is top-tier among top-tier," Fumino judged silently. "But that personality… she's way too jumpy. She's nothing like Creek."
Without thinking, she compared her own Creek to Oguri Cap, and a warm current rose in her chest at once.
My Creek really is the best. Obedient, and she takes care of people.
In front of her, Super Creek saw her Trainer staring off into space at her and tilted her head in a slightly dozy, adorable way.
"Let's stop here for today."
Closing her notebook, Fumino shut her eyes briefly and replayed what she'd learned during this period several times in her mind before opening them again.
Just you wait, Kuroha. I'll surpass you one day.
"Come on, Creek. Let's head back too."
…
At the same time, on a nearby turf training track.
"Boom—!" "Boom—!"
Two blazing streams of red-and-white light intertwined on the course, Teio and McQueen refusing to yield an inch.
Their terrifying footsteps shook the track, detonating like thunder, whipping up a storm of grass clippings as they charged madly toward the finish.
Off to the side, Kuroha sat cross-legged on the grass, watching the duel with total focus.
Suddenly, a soft, lush pressure pressed broadly against his back.
Maruzensky's pale, lotus-root-like arms draped naturally around Kuroha's neck. With absolutely no restraint, she pressed up close—practically tackling him with her chest—then rested her delicate face affectionately on his shoulder.
"Maruzensky, what is it?"
"Mm-hm~ What, I can't come over for some cuddles?"
Maruzensky huffed twice. In front of Kuroha, she was completely like a lovestruck girl.
"Of course you can." Kuroha chuckled. "If you like it, then sure—anytime."
The brown-haired, voluptuous beauty beamed and pressed in even closer.
After being affectionate for a bit, the two of them turned their heads and watched the swift figures on the track with renewed seriousness.
"…The new generation really is something else," Maruzensky sighed quietly as she watched those two blurred silhouettes. Her tone was full of envy. "That drive, that vitality… If only I'd been born in this era."
Kuroha lifted a hand and smiled as he pinched her soft, flawless cheek.
"What, our supercar is starting to miss her youth?"
"Ara~" Maruzensky didn't dodge. Instead, she smiled sweetly. "I'm still a youthful, beautiful girl, you know. You can't just say things like that."
Feeling the staggering softness behind him that made the mind wander, Kuroha could only shake his head helplessly.
"But you're not wrong. Whether it's Teio or McQueen, the two of them really are the most outstanding among this generation of Umamusume."
"I have very high expectations for them."
Right as they were talking—
"BOOM—!!"
The red-and-white light finally smashed through the 750-meter mark. McQueen crossed first.
It was an outcome you could see coming.
After all, the advantage of reaching True Blooming a full year early was simply too enormous.
McQueen's physical condition—tempered over this year—was practically charging toward the 1100-point threshold.
With a gap like that, even if McQueen didn't open her Domain, Teio still needed both her talent and her Domain just to keep up.
And that was before both of them went all-out at the same time.
At least for now, Teio had no hope of winning.
Past the finish marker.
The purple-haired girl slowed to a stop. She turned around and looked at Teio several meters behind her, elegance carrying a calm composure that belonged to the victor.
"Teio, it looks like I'm the one who comes out ahead again this time."
"Hah… hah…"
Teio bent forward with her hands braced on her knees, breathing hard.
She wiped the sweat from her forehead, her delicate face flushed with clear stubbornness as she grit her teeth.
"Don't get cocky… McQueen! Hah… Next time—next time I'll definitely pass you!"
"Oh? Then I'll be looking forward to it!"
McQueen didn't laugh at her. Instead, she walked up, reached out, and pulled Teio up from the ground.
Not far away, seeing this, Kuroha stood up as well. He brushed the grass off his clothes and called out loudly.
"Teio, McQueen! Training ends here for today! Time to head back!"
"Oh! Got it, Trainer!"
Teio immediately bounced back to full energy, waving brightly at Kuroha.
(End of Chapter)
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